Men Held In Bomb Plot That Targeted Courthouse

Two men were arrested here Sunday in connection with bombings of the county courthouse and a bank, and authorities seized nearly 600 pounds of stolen dynamite in what they believe was a plot to destroy evidence in a pending criminal case.

No one was hurt in the pair of bombings, which rocked the Solano County courthouse in Northern California, damaged three automated tellers outside a Wells Fargo bank last week.

“It is our belief that this was a deliberate attempt to stop the criminal justice system from operating in Solano County,” Police Chief Robert Nichelini said.

Vallejo police identified the two suspects as Francis Donald Ernestberg, 40, of Vallejo, and Oston G. Osotonu, 24, whose hometown was not listed. They were being held without bail on suspicion of conspiracy, possession of explosive devices and burglary.

A third man was being sought and was considered armed and dangerous, police said.

“They wanted to stop a relatively serious court case and they thought if they could destroy the evidence they could stop the trial,” said Vallejo police spokesman Lt. Ron Jackson.

The arrests capped a weeklong investigation that began Jan. 25 when two children found a dynamite-packed knapsack leaning against the outside wall of the city library. On Sunday night, the discovery of another 61 sticks of dynamite in a car, and 500 pounds more in the garage of a house prompted the evacuation of about 20 blocks in the heart of a central Vallejo neighborhood.

Police believe the suspects intended to use the explosives to target Vallejo’s police evidence facility, which is in the basement of the library. “We think it was going to happen relatively soon and you can imagine what 60 sticks of dynamite would have done,” Jackson said.

After the first arrest early Sunday in an east Vallejo apartment complex, a team of federal and local authorities recovered a brown Pontiac Grand Le Mans wired as a car bomb with 61 sticks of dynamite.

Then, officials found 500 pounds of stolen dynamite in the garage of a house in central Vallejo - about a half-dozen blocks from the police station - and police joined federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents in going door to door evacuating residents about 6:30 p.m.

Jackson said the bombs may have been planned for the library and the bank at the same time, with the bank blast intended to serve as a diversion, he said.

Authorities said they have found no evidence that the suspects had connections to any other groups or cities.

Because the dynamite was apparently all stolen from the same source, authorities believe they have recovered virtually all of it.

Paul Snabel, a special agent with the ATF, said evidence recovered so far does not indicate the group was sophisticated in its efforts, “but they had enough knowledge to make (a bomb) go off. They had a basic understanding of what they needed.”

“It could be a very devastating device in a city,” he said.